The Tomatis Method Essay -- Health Medical Essays

The Tomatis Method Dr. Alfred A. Tomatis is a French ear, nose, and throat doctor who made astonishing medical and psychological discoveries that led to audio-psycho-phonology, or the Tomatis method. Also called â€Å"auditory training†, auditory stimulation†, and â€Å"listening therapy†, the purpose of this treatment is to reeducate the way we listen, and it is used in over two hundred and fifty centers around the world. (http://www.tomatis.com/overview.html) The Tomatis method claims to benefit a wide variety of people. People suffering from auditory processing problems, dyslexia, attention deficit disorder, autism, and learning disorders can improve their communication and social behavior by auditory stimulation, which can eliminate or reduce the severity of the disorder. This is based on the belief that the symptoms of these disorders are not caused by the disorder itself, but by a sensory regulation problem that begins in our most primordial sensory instrument, the inner ear. (http://www.tomatis.net/Tomatis_tomatis.html) In addition, those suffering from depression, low self-esteem, or just wanting to learn a new language or fine tune their musical talent can also benefit from this unique treatment. Attention, focus, learning, and language abilities can all be improved by retraining the ear to listen using â€Å"charging high-frequency sounds†. (http://www.tomatis.com/overview.html) BACKGROUND: THE EAR The ear has three basic functions. The first is the most obvious, the filtration and analysis of sound by a part of the ear called the cochlea. This function consists of two parts: hearing and listening. Hearing is a passive process and we have limited abilities to improve it. Listening, ho... ...vailable one can conclude that it lacks the concrete evidence needed to become a standard treatment. Bibliography Anonymous. (1994). Auditory Integration Training. ASHA, 36, 55-58. Cummings, Richard Lloyd. (1986). An Evaluation of the Tomatis Listening Training Program. Dissertation Abstracts International, 47, 858-859. Kershner, John R. (1990). Journal of the Division for Children with Learning Disabilities. Learning Disabilities Quarterly, 13, 43-53. Kershner, John R. (1986). Evaluation of the Tomatis Listening Program. Canadian Journal of Special Education, 2, 1-32. Tomatis, Alfred. (1969). Dyslexia. Ontario: University of Ottawa Press, 83. Van-Jaarsveld, Pieter E; du-Plessis, Wynand F. (1988). Audio-psycho-phonology at Potchefstroom: A review. South African Journal of Psychology, 18, 136-143.